Marko Zivkovic
Apple's iOS 26 only made its debut on June 9, and researchers have already found mentions of unreleased hardware in the operating system code.
At WWDC, the iPhone maker revealed its latest assortment of operating systems, all of which bear the same "26" version number and design language, dubbed 'Liquid Glass'. The first developer betas of iOS 26 and its counterparts were rolled out shortly after the keynote, and a surprising discovery has since been made.
iOS 26 features an explicit mention of the as-of-yet unreleased AirPods Pro 3, alongside the current AirPods Pro 2 and original AirPods Pro. This is the second time this has happened, as an Apple software release on May 15 included the phrase "AirPods Pro 2 or later."
The discovery, first shared by MacRumors, serves as further confirmation that Apple is indeed working on an upgraded model. It's not much of a surprise, given that the AirPods Pro last received a meaningful hardware update two years ago, in 2023.
The original AirPods Pro were released back in 2019. The first major upgrade arrived two years later in 2022, when the earbuds gained Find My support along with improved ANC. In 2023, the AirPods Pro received a USB-C connector in place of Lightning, as well as lossless audio support for Apple Vision Pro users.
Apple is widely believed to be working on the third-generation AirPods Pro. We've heard rumors surrounding heart rate monitoring coming to AirPods Pro 3 for a while, since December 2024. With the launch of the Powerbeats Pro 2, a model which supports this feature, it seems even more likely. A September 2024 rumor also indicated the feature would be available with the AirPods Pro 3.
Patents dating as far back as 2014 and 2017 indicate Apple considered adding heart-rate sensors to its wireless earbuds. It would be a logical next step to bring the feature over from the PowerBeats Pro 2 to the AirPods Pro 3, as an additional selling point.
Design changes, active noise cancellation improvements, and a new H3 chip are among the other changes rumored for the third-generation AirPods Pro. They're expected to hit the shelves in the coming months.
Based on years past, they'll be unveiled during Apple's fall iPhone 17 event around September 2025. If pricing remains consistent, they'll come out with an MSRP of $249, the same as the AirPods Pro 2.
Separately, Apple's also said to be working on a few other models, including a lighter version of the AirPods Max, as well as an entirely new AirPods variant with cameras for Visual Inteligence features.
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Charles Martin
Malcolm Owen
Mike Wuerthele
Amber Neely
Andrew Orr
Andrew O'Hara
3 Comments
Hopefully, Apple improves the sound quality of AirPods Pro 3.
I’d rather see improved battery life than fluff like heart monitors and whatnot.
Really, when you think about it, a dramatic upgrade on a product would imply that the preceding offering is not that impressive. The next version would be, I would think, an incremental upgrade in that a properly designed product ought not be so flawed that its replacement represents a game-changing offering. Wireless headphones, by design, are subject to a short lifespan in that the battery tech doesn't last forever and it's just not practical to replace a worn battery in such a small device. So new versions are put out less frequently than some other products, no doubt timed to coincide with when the latest batch of headphones are likely in need of replacement. Many of Apple's products have achieved a degree of refinement such that going forward there will be a tendency to replace product for reasons other than acquiring the latest and greatest. Just picked up am M4 Mac Mini not because the M1 Mac Mini was lacking for how I used it but because I wanted to set up the M1 as a media server. It's not like the old days when the horsepower just wasn't up to the task. The M4, barely larger than an Apple TV, is plenty capable and even the M1 is a decent performer. The AirPods Pro 2 is a decent wireless headphone. I'll keep mine for as long as the batteries last no matter what Apple introduces as a replacement. I suspect I'm not alone.